Coffee with … Santa Claus

For the month of December, he’s front and centre, but what about the other 11 months of the year?

You might think he has time to relax, but Santa Claus gets very little time off. After all, he has a world of toys he has to make, and a list that stretches 40,000 kilometres, give or take.

“I think I will take Boxing Day off, but then it will be back to work,” said the ‘Jolly Old Man,’ in an exclusive interview. “You know, there’s lots of work to do in between delivery days.”

As long as the list is, and as much as it changes, and grows, every year, he says there’s one staple that seems to be the most popular request, every single Christmas season.

“Lego. Lego is the big one. I have kids tell me they have whole rooms full of it. I always wink and tell them ‘I know.’ After all, I brought it to them.”

It’s also among the hardest for him to create … all those little nubs on every single piece, and they have to be perfect, or the piece is a throwaway.

“If it doesn’t fit, I can’t use it, so I have to be very careful.”

Dolls have also stood the test of time, and other toys that burst onto the scene in the past few decades are now becoming staples.

Video games are here to stay, and Santa says another stocking stuffer he always carries a few extra of are Rubik’s Cubes. That’s also another one he struggles with, when making.

“Well, you know … it has to be solved when you first give it away.”

Does that mean he’s a Rubik’s Cube expert?

“Ummm, no, not me,” he confesses. “But a couple of my elves have it down to a system.”

Stuffed animals are another gift that his work crew spends much of the off-season making.

“Oh, stuffies have always been popular. Stuffed bears, animals of all sorts… even the odd monkey or two.”

And what about his house? Who do his elves, and Mrs. Claus make their Christmas wishes to?

“That I don’t know… but it’s someone pretty reliable. Every Christmas, when I come home to the North Pole, after my long, long day of delivering, it never fails… there are always gifts under the tree.”

And what is Santa’s favourite part of Christmas?

“Just knowing that I bring happiness to the children; that’s my biggest reward.

“Well, that, and the cookies and milk so many of you leave me. I always look forward to those snacks.”

So you see, Comox Valley, there really is a Santa Claus. He’s on his way. Don’t forget to leave him some cookies and milk.